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[REVIEW] AUKEY Power Plug
I will be the first to admit that I have been hesitant in jumping on the bandwagon when it comes to smart home products. Why do I need something to adjust my thermostat, dim my lights and turn my fan on for me? Pfft… I’m an independent and self-sufficient man. That’s just lazy right? No… it’s not. It’s amazing. Lol. In fact, after getting my hands on some smart home products, I would gladly buy a smart toaster at this point – especially if it sliced the bread for me. Smart home products were like “meh” to me at first, but as soon as I was able to say “Google, turn off my lights and set my alarm for 6am”, I was hooked. And with all of that being said, say hello to AUKEY’s Smart Plug.
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What is it?: A smart plug is a wall outlet that is connected via Wi-Fi, that enables you to turn it on/off either through an app, or voice command (if it’s connected to some sort of smart device). This varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, but pretty much all of them allow you to turn them on/off at will, or program scheduled times for them to turn on/off. The only real limitation to this is the products you plug into them, or your imagination. For instance, if you don’t feel like reaching over to turn your lamp off at night, you can use the app to turn it off. Or, if you have a smart assistant/hub, you can say “Google, turn off my light” and VOILA! I think one of the most fun things that I’ve been able to do with my Smart Plug is turn off the internet when my kids won’t come to the dinner table – maybe this might be a great parenting tool for you. Lol. As many people know, Fortnite has become a very addicting game for millions of people, including children. In my home, we have dinner together as a family and sometimes the responsible members of my family are stuck out in the wind waiting for someone to finish a game. Now, if they don’t come into the kitchen on the first announcement I skip straight to “Google, turn off the internet.” It’s miraculous how quickly they come into the kitchen for dinner!
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How does it work? There is a simple way to use the Smart Plug, and there is a more advanced method for using them.
Simple Method: The simple method is the barebones connectivity with your phone through the AUKEY app. It is compatible with iOS and Android. All you have to do is go to the Play Store or the App Store and download the AUKEY Home app. If you are having trouble locating the app, you can open up the user manual and there is a QR code that you can scan, which will get you to the right place. Once you download the app, connectivity is easy. The Smart Plug will be in “connectivity mode” be default once you plug it in, which means that when you fire the app up all you have to do is locate the appropriate product and it will scan for the nearby device for you to add. PSA here… I will say that it’s best to do one plug at a time, so you don’t have to worry about figuring out which one you’re adding. Once you connect to the device it’s ready to go, and you can use the app to turn the Smart Plug on/off and set a scheduled timer. It also helps if you rename the plug in the app, so you know exactly what you’re messing with when you’re managing your devices.
Advanced Mode: For Advanced mode, you will need some sort of smart device or use the Google Assistant, or Amazon Alexa control app. There are detailed instructions in the user manual to help set this up, but once you get it connected you can simply say “Ok Google”, or “Alexa”, and then follow it up with a prompt like “turn off the light” or “turn off the internet” – This depends on what you name the Plug. Each plug will have a default name, which is how the voice recognition platform will recognize it, which is why it’s essential to name them appropriately. I just name mine for whatever device is connected to the Plug, i.e., Internet, Fan, Lamp, etc…
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Pairing: In the event that you cannot connect the Smart Plug to the AUKEY app when you fire it up, all you have to do to ensure that the device is in “pairing” mode is to hold down the power button on the Smart Plug for 5 seconds. This will put the Plug into “pairing” mode, so you can connect it.
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Limitations: The maximum wattage that the Smart Plug can handle is 1800W. This shouldn’t be an issue for many people, but if you feel the need to connect over 1800W to a single outlet or power strip, then you won’t be able to use it with the Smart Plug. The manual doesn’t say what will happen if you overload it, but I can only imagine that a) it’s hazardous or b) you’ll get sucked into another dimension. Regardless, I don’t recommend it.
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Conclusion: The AUKEY Smart Plug is a great addition to any home, and convenient to use. Thankfully the device supports both Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, which allows you to use those nifty voice commands. But if you don’t want to treat your appliance buddies like a digital butler, you can fire the app up and hit the off button for each individual Plug. Regardless, it’s very convenient and quite nice. I wouldn’t say that you need them on every outlet in your entire house, but placing them in convenient areas like your bedroom, the living room or the kitchen, can really make life easier. Another wonderful thing about the AUKEY Smart Plug is that they come in a (2) pack, for the low price of $27.99, which is crazy cheap and really undercuts the competition. I wholeheartedly recommend them. They are great your outfitting your home, and also work well for gifts (Christmas is just around the corner). And if all of that’s not enough, the Smart Plugs come with AUKEY’s 24-month warranty.
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If you’re interested in picking up some AUKEY Smart Plugs for your home, you can find them on AUKEY’s Amazon store page for the low price of $27.99 - https://www.amazon.com/AUKEY-Socket-...UvbUpU13295970 - And as of right now (October 11th, 2018), there is a $3 coupon available on the product page if you click the check-box. The Smart Plugs also qualify for Amazon Prime 2-day shipping! As always, if you have any questions or comments, please leave them down in the comments section.
